Q&A with Nicole Castroman (Author of Blackhearts & Blacksouls)

Gryffindor Books: First off let me say thank you for agreeing to do this with me!

Nicole: Of course! Thank you so much for asking me.

Gryffindor Books: What or who got you into reading and how did they influence what books you read?

Nicole: My parents were always big readers. Both of them. I can’t imagine a time when they haven’t read. Even now when I go to visit, their house is bursting with books.

Gryffindor Books: What got you into writing? How many books have you published?

Nicole: My mom always encouraged me to write. I had a very vivid imagination when I was younger and she said you need to do this. But it took me a long time to actually start writing. I have one published novel. My second one releases April 11. But I have nine other manuscripts that may or may not see the light of day. 🙂

Gryffindor Books: What got you into pirates? How did you decide to start a book series about them?

Nicole: I had just parted ways with my first literary agent when I got the idea for BLACKHEARTS. My husband suggested we take a family vacation to Charleston, SC to try to cheer me up. I love history and so I researched everything there was to do or see in Charleston and came across a small paragraph that said at one time, Blackbeard the pirate held the entire city hostage. After more research, I discovered only the last two years of Blackbeard’s life are documented. BLACKHEARTS was born.

Gryffindor Books: How did you come up with the names Teach and Anne?

Nicole: Edward Teach is the name most often associated with Blackbeard. His flagship was called the Queen Anne’s Revenge and so I knew immediately that that would be the name of his love interest. It’s believed that he fought in the Queen Anne’s War, but I took some artistic license with my story.

Gryffindor Books: How long did it take to get from starting to write your first book, Blackhearts, to getting it published?

Nicole: I started BLACKHEARTS in August 2012. I signed with my next agent in January of 2013. But BLACKHEARTS didn’t sell until March of 2014. 28 editors rejected this manuscript during the year of 2013. Just when we were getting ready to clean up one of my other manuscripts to send out on submission, an editor contacted my agent and asked if it was still available. She was moving publishing houses and S&S bought it. So you can see, my favorite mantra is NEVER GIVE UP. I’m a firm believer that things happen for a reason and that things will eventually work out for the best in the end.

Gryffindor Books: Do you see your books becoming into movies or a TV show? If so who would you like to play the main characters?

Nicole: I would be happy with either a movie or a TV show, but I think it would lend itself best to a TV show. It’s a very character driven novel. My dream is that the BBC picks it up and they cast Aidan Turner as Teach and Gugu Mbatha Raw or Denise Vasa as Anne. 🙂

Gryffindor Books: So far one book has been published but another is releasing on April 11 2017. Will this be the last book in the series or will there be more books?

Nicole: I can’t say anything at the moment. I think there’s more to the story that needs to be told, but we shall see. 🙂